Cohesion
by Moonshayde
Summary: As doubts and fears plague Cameron while SG1 sleeps, he starts to learn the value of hope and togetherness. Missing scene for Morpheus. Features Vala, SG1, and Dr. Lam.


_Disclaimer: Stargate, Stargate SG-1 and all of its characters, titles, names, and back-story are the property of MGM/UA, Double Secret Productions, Gekko Productions, SciFi Channel, and Showtime/Viacom. All other characters, the story idea and the story itself are the sole property of the author. This story cannot be printed anywhere without the sole permission of the author. Realize this is for entertainment purposes only; no financial gain or profit has been gained from this fiction. This story is not meant to be an infringement on the rights of the above-mentioned establishments _

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_The cave was filled with them, little devils with bat-wings and razor sharp teeth, poking and prodding him without mercy. Hell, he'd said mercy. Cameron had shouted it ten times already. White flag, surrender, and all that. 

But they were dragging him now. Deeper, deeper. He could hear ol'Lucifer himself stoking the fire, waiting for him. And laughing at him. Cameron could hear the laughing. No, yelling. He was yelling in this steady and abrasive voice that reminded him of…

"Wake up," Lam ordered. "You're having a nightmare."

Cameron opened his eyes, wincing at the bright light that flooded his vision. "Oh damn, that hurts," he mumbled.

"That would be a good thing," Lam said as she slowly came into focus.

Cameron wasn't so sure about that. He rubbed at his eyes, trying to make them clear faster.

"Relax." Lam was talking to him again. He watched as her blurry form checked out some equipment by his bedside before she started to walk away, her voice becoming faint. "You're not going anywhere," she told him.

Cameron moaned and closed his eyes, reaching upward to hold his head. No, he didn't think he was going anywhere. He was pretty sure he was staying right here. He hadn't felt this bad since that night with the tequila, the bongos, and the Brown twins.

But this wasn't half as fun.

Though, he realized that if he was here at the SGC, snug as a bug in a rug, then he'd made it back. Teal'c must have come back for him. They must have all made it. And they'd all be just fine.

He…was in the SGC, wasn't he?

Cameron frowned, feeling his bed start to vibrate. He opened his tired eyes, lifted his head, and glanced over to his right. He suddenly wished he hadn't.

"Good morning, sunshine," Vala said brightly.

Cameron rolled his eyes and plopped back down onto the bed. "Oh, God, I'm in hell," he muttered.

"Ha ha," she said while continuing to kick at his bed. "You are so funny."

"I like to think so," Cameron mumbled.

He went to turn away from her and close his eyes – but not sleep because hell he'd had enough sleep – when he felt his bed continue to shake and rumble. She kicked again and again and again and again…

"All right, talulabell, just what is your problem?"

She slapped her hands to her side and glared at him, like the answer was obvious. "I'm bored," she said. "All any of you have done since you've returned is sleep."

"I'm sorry we're not able to be your choice of ongoing entertainment. That is what HBO is for." He bit back a moan as he forced himself to sit up. "Or the circus."

"Please. Believe me, if I wanted entertainment, I would go somewhere far more interesting than your bedside."

Cameron had no doubt about that.

"Why don't you go annoy Jackson?" he asked. As he thought of his teammate, he started to remember more details of the ordeal they'd gone through, his concern spiking up a notch. He started to look around the infirmary, searching for any signs of the rest of SG-1.

He hoped they'd made it. He hoped they were awake.

Cameron could only see half the room, Lam having pulled the curtain to give him privacy. Or to torture him with whashername over here. With Carolyn, he never knew.

As he reached out toward the curtain, he grabbed onto the side of the bed to ground himself. The last thing he wanted was to fall out of bed in this little nightie of his and flash every nurse in the room, while giving Mal Doran a free show. He managed to pull back the curtain in a quick, jerky sweep.

He found himself staring right at the not so happy face of Doctor Carolyn Lam.

"Hey," he said. He laughed and cleared his throat. "You—"

"_You _should be resting," she said, pushing him back down onto the bed. "I'm not going to tell you again."

Cameron wasn't really interested in what Lam had to say. With the curtain crunched up behind the monitoring equipment, he had gotten a clear view of the infirmary. And what he saw didn't give him much hope.

Across from him, he saw Sam, out like a light, her face pale and zombified under the harsh lights. On the other side of her, he saw Jackson, looking pretty much the same. Teal'c was nowhere in sight.

He blinked, not exactly knowing what to say. He'd failed. Again. Ever since he'd joined SG-1…

"I know what you're thinking," Lam said, arching her eyebrows. "I've seen that face before."

"My team's pulling Rip Van Winkles on me," he muttered. "And I'm here chatting it up with Pippi Longstocking."

Vala frowned and went to open her mouth, but shut it when Lam gave her the look of death.

"They'll be fine," Lam said. "We managed to synthesize a drug from your previous research and the creature you brought back with you to kill the parasite before it became lodged in any of your brains." She motioned over to Sam and Jackson. "Now it's just a matter of sleeping it off."

Sleeping it off. Cameron wiped his mouth. Perfect, he'd been drooling again.

"Last thing I want is more sleep." He frowned. "I had some crazy-ass dreams."

"Oh, were they kinky?" Vala asked, tapping at his bed again.

"Wouldn't you like to know," he said, grabbing onto her leg. Ignoring Vala's mumbles and faces as she kicked at him, he turned back to Lam. "Those little cockroaches did all that?"

Lam shook her head. "No. Not while the parasite was in you. Once we took that out, your body started to compensate. As soon as you neared a waking state, your body passed through an REM dream state." She glanced over at his vitals before glancing back at Sam and Jackson. "I'm sure the same with happen with them."

Well, wasn't that just dandy. So, they'd survived the ordeal, but those little suckers were going to pack one final punch.

But there was still something nagging at Cameron's mind. "Where's –?"

"I am here, Colonel Mitchell," Teal'c said, entering the room, walking past Lam as she went to check on her other patients. In his hands he held a large container, filled with rocks and grass.

Cameron recognized its contents immediately. "Oh, hey, it's little Joe Bob!"

The lizard was resting on a rock, swinging its tail back and forth lazily, as if it didn't have a care in the world. When Cameron leaned a little closer, it tilted its head, blinked at him, and flicked out its tongue. Cameron had the feeling he'd just been razzed by a reptile.

"Why're you toting the little critter around, anyway?" he asked.

"When I heard that you were awakening, I decided to retrieve the creature for you."

Okay, Cameron was officially confused.

"He doesn't get it," Vala said to Teal'c.

Teal'c cocked his head. "You were resolute in your pursuit of the creature," Teal'c said. "Do you not wish to see the fruits of your victory?"

Cameron was sure he heard a mixed metaphor in there somewhere, but he wasn't about to tell Teal'c. Instead, he tapped at the glass, only to jump when Joe Bob hissed at him.

Vala laughed. "I think I like it. He obviously has good taste."

"Indeed."

"Hey," Cameron said. "What is this gang-up on Cameron day?"

Vala snorted. "Dear, that is every day."

Cameron watched Teal'c smile and nod in agreement. He was dealing with his own personal conspiracy within his own team.

Another kick.

Cameron glared at her. "This does not bode well for your crazy people test." When he saw her bring up her legs to hug them in a huff, Cameron knew he'd hit a sore spot. He grinned to let her know.

Vala turned her chin up, pretending to give him the brush off. "I'm sure you find my fragile state of being very funny."

"Fragile my ass." He glanced back toward Sam, and then Jackson, trying not to show how troubled he was over their still bodies. So, he changed the subject. "Hey, just why aren't you sitting vigil for Jackson?"

"Can't a girl seek other options?"

"I doubt this about options."

She didn't back down. "I see enough of him, don't I?"

Cameron studied her face for a few seconds. Then, he let out a loud laugh that filled the room. "Ah, no. I get it. You broke his computer, didn't you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Aw, sure you do."

"I don't want to talk to you anymore." She got up, stomping her feet as she headed toward Sam and Jackson.

Teal'c grabbed her arm. "It would be wise for you to let them be."

She glanced down at her arm before meeting his gaze. "I go there. You stay here with your boyfriend." She grinned. "Everybody wins."

Cameron nearly leapt out of his bed. "Whoa, hey now –"

Teal'c, unperturbed, did not let go. "I suggest you rephrase your words."

"No one here has a sense of humor," she said with a sigh. She shook off Teal'c's grip and started for the rest of his team. "No one," she mumbled.

"You just love messing with everyone, don't you?" Cameron asked.

Teal'c didn't answer, but his face lit up with a bright smile that told it all. Cameron chuckled. Priceless.

But after a moment, he sobered, some of humor and lightness he was feeling a second ago fading into the reality of what had happened. He knew it had been a close one.

"Hey, man. I wanted to thank you for coming back for me," Cameron said softly.

The smile faded from Teal'c's face, leaving Cameron with a bottomless empty feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"I am sorry," Teal'c said, his voice laden with regret. "I could no longer fight the sickness. It was not I who came for you."

"Well, you did your best," Cameron said. And he meant it. He hoped Teal'c understood just how much. "I don't think anyone could fight that thing off."

It _had_ been a close one. They'd gotten lucky. Very lucky. Cameron started to wonder if they'd ever make it through in the end.

But SG-1 had fought against all odds before. They had always held onto hope. And they had remained together.

Staying together was part of the plan. If they couldn't do that, they were as good as dead.

"It's the thought that counts," Cameron finally said, clapping his hand over Teal'c's. "And we're all here and that's what matters."

Teal'c's grim face broke into a small smile. "Indeed it is, Colonel Mitchell. Indeed it is."

Sam took that as her cue to join them. Cameron watched with relief as she started to move under the sheets on her bed, her face puckered in thought, almost distressful even, as she started to come back to the land of the living.

"Rise and shine, Sleeping Beauty!" Cameron called out.

Sam grunted, her eyes only making it as far open slits, as she sent him a glare packed with annoyance. Then, she winced and held her head. "Holy Hannah," she muttered. "I have a headache."

"You will be well once again," Teal'c said with confidence.

She nodded, but frowned as her eyes fell onto the tank that Teal'c was carrying. "I don't want to know, do I?"

Teal'c kept his face subdued, but his eyes were bursting with relief and happiness. "You do not."

She sighed, but nodded. After clearing her throat, Sam started to peruse the infirmary, soaking it all in. "We're okay?" she asked.

"You'll be fine," Lam told her, checking her quickly before she moved onto Jackson.

"No more bug things thanks to you and Joe Bob," Cameron said brightly.

"And Doctor Reimer," she said, her tone touched with sadness. She turned away from them, her gaze finally falling onto Jackson. Cameron could see her tense. "Daniel?"

"He'll be okay. The man's got nine lives," Cameron said. Though he tried to sound funny, he couldn't help but be a little concerned. He had Sam back. Now he just needed Jackson back with them.

Jackson had impeccable timing.

He heard Jackson begin to stir. Craning his neck so he could see beyond Sam, Cameron caught Vala "helping" Jackson awaken, much to Lam's protest.

Mal Doran kicked at his bed.

Cameron chuckled, watching Jackson open his eyes, and fight through the sleep. His expression soured, though in a playful, bemused sort of way, before he sighed and plopped down on the bed.

"Oh, God, I'm in hell," he muttered.

Yeah, Cameron decided, burying himself a little deeper into his bed and closing his eyes. Hope, humor, and togetherness. They'd make it through this crisis.

They didn't have any other choice.

The End


End file.
